Unless otherwise indicated herein, the materials described in this section are not prior art to the claims in this application and are not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.
LIDAR (laser imaging detection and radar) sensors emit high power infrared light that can be harmful to human eyes. As light become spread by the sensor during a scanning of an environment, potential for damage or harm is present. Traditional mitigations for eye safety involve spreading the laser beam on a wide aperture or reducing optical power to bring peak intensity under a safe threshold. However, such techniques reduce a range of the sensor and can cause the sensor to be overly complex.
In some instances, LIDAR sensors may be operated in close proximity to humans. For example, autonomous vehicles use various computing systems to aid in the transport of passengers from one location to another, and such vehicles are typically equipped with various types of sensors to detect objects in the surroundings. An autonomous vehicle may include lasers, sonar, radar, cameras, and other devices which scan and record data from surroundings of the vehicle. Sensor data from one or more of these devices may be used to detect objects and their respective characteristics (position, shape, heading, speed, etc.). This detection and identification is useful for the safe operation of autonomous vehicle; however, such detection and identification may be harmful for anyone in close proximity to the laser devices.